Ethics [Thursday, September 9, 2nd period]

[sith_happened]

"As you might remember from the syllabus I handed out last week," Anakin said as he leaned against his desk, "today's topic is lying. In Fandom, where multiple timelines meet and mingle, lying can be a terribly complex subject."

He gazed around the room. "We have students here from different centuries who by stepping foot onto the island learn immediately about electricity, electronics and reality television. Depending on societies they arrive from, they could learn about guns--or even the very concept of war--and change their worlds irrevocably."

Anakin began pacing. "Sometimes the situation is even more specific. Several years ago, a student arrived here who I knew--but I knew him as a Jedi Master I'd met when I was a small child. I also knew that his death, at least in my timeline, had been a violent one. A teacher I had used to say that the future is constantly in motion, but my experience with multiple timelines seems to show that certain large, galaxy changing events tend to stay constant. Did I have an obligation to tell this student about his future? Or do I respect his timeline and his ability to make his own decisions?"

He sat back down. "The questions today are these: if you have knowledge of the future, what parts would you lie about--even through omission--from someone further behind in the timeline? And if you met someone from your future, would you want to know anything about what you might face someday? Would you respect them for not telling you everything? Or even anything?"

Comments

Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[sith_happened]

"If you have knowledge of someone's future, what parts would you lie about--even through omission--from someone further behind in the timeline?"

Re: Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[furnaceface]

//I do have knowledge of th'future events of a few people I've run into, at least so far,// Jonothon admitted. //But none of them have ever really asked about any of it. I wouldn't know what good telling them any of it might do, at any rate. Why haunt them with possibilities, if it turns out there's nothing to be done to change any of it?//

Re: Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[sith_happened]

Anakin nodded. "And by running headlong into the future intent on changing things, you can make things much worse," he said.

Not that he'd ever done such a thing. Twice. Ahem.

Re: Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[azuldragon.livejournal.com]

"Would you tell them if they asked?" Azula asked, curious.

Re: Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[give-areason.livejournal.com]

Rosalind's shoulders were very very straight.

Her thoughts, however, were conflicted. She was, after all, keeping some things from Zack, and yet she herself had knowledge of her own future.

"If they ask, tell them."

Rosalind didn't even know if she agreed with that. Not that her expression--carefully shut down--gave that way.

Re: Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[sith_happened]

"Tell them what?" Anakin asked. "Everything? What if by coming to Fandom, they've managed to shift their entire timeline and they'll now find you completely insane?"

Re: Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[wrongkindofsith]

Cara was not going to think about the fact that if she'd been slightly more forthcoming with why letting Richard destroy Rahl protected the Mord'Sith she mightn't have ended up left for dead at the bottom of a ravine, especially since it was equally likely her sisters knowing her reasons wouldn't have changed anything, or even made things worse.

These were thoughts she didn't have quite often.

Instead she shrugged. "Whatever's necessary." Which did bring up the question of what exactly counted as necessary.

Re: Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[sith_happened]

It was like he could read narrative!

"What counts as necessary to you?" he asked.

Re: Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[azuldragon.livejournal.com]

Azula tilted her head. "You're the only other person I've heard whose answer is similar to mine."

Re: Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[brat-intraining.livejournal.com]

"Why would I lie about it?" Kennedy asked-- not being belligerent, just honestly curious. "I mean, if I knew something about someone's future that could save their life someday, wouldn't it be pretty unethical of me to keep it to myself?"

Re: Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[sith_happened]

"Because maybe their death is the catalyst for other events," Anakin said. "How would you judge which part of the future is more important than others?"

Hypocritical Anakin was hypocritical.

Re: Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[didntchewgrass.livejournal.com]

"I think the future isn't set in stone," Elphaba said. "Just because things happened one way for you does not mean they will happen the same way for someone in the past. And would it be better for them to live in fear of something that may not happen, then to live happily but unprepared? I... do not think I could make that decision."

Re: Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[sith_happened]

"So you've just restated my question," Anakin replied with a tiny smile. "I'm looking for an answer. I'm not going to judge it--think about feels right for you and then tell me."

Re: Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[azuldragon.livejournal.com]

"If it furthers my goals?" Or it was a Tuesday, or just as a joke, or even if she just felt like it... "I'd lie about everything."

Re: Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[sith_happened]

Anakin was not at all surprised to hear Azula say that. "Would you make up future events to manipulate someone in a direction you'd like to send them?"

He'd done that.

Re: Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[nothornlessrose.livejournal.com]

Cassidy chewed on her lip as she thought about this one. Mother Night and may the Darkness have mercy, this was a hard one.

"I'm not sure," she said honestly. "Because telling them or not telling them could both be a blade's edge. What if you not telling them causes something to change and it undoes their future -- and maybe affects something that was good and needed because of what they did in the future? On the other side of the argument, what if telling them makes them overly arrogant and they make a mistake earlier on and still undo the future that you knew." She shook her head. "Mother Night. There is no clear or easy answer on this one."

Re: Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[sith_happened]

"That's why I asked," Anakin said with a little smile. "How would you choose?"

Re: Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[whateverknight.livejournal.com]

Squall shrugged. "What would be the point?" Either of lying, or of deliberately volunteering information? All the time travel stuff was too complicated anyway, and none of it really made sense. If someone asked, he'd probably answer.

Re: Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[sith_happened]

"The point of lying, or the point of telling them?" Anakin replied. "There would be two different points."

Re: Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[faithandscience.livejournal.com]

The mention of saving someone from death had derailed William's thoughts a little. He found himself thinking not of the question precisely, but what he would do if offered the chance to travel back to his childhood, with what he knew now of concussions. Could he have saved his mother's life?

He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and then forced himself to re-focus on the actual question that had been asked.

"I think, if I were directly asked, I could not lie to someone," Will admitted. "On the other hand, as you say, it is important to respect another's ability to make their own decisions. I would not offer such advice freely in regards to trivial matters. But if it were to save a life- I would."

Re: Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[sith_happened]

Anakin nodded. "Would it be any life, or would it have to be someone you cared for?" he asked. "While here you might learn of cataclysmic future events. Screaming about them in your time period would brand you insane."

Re: Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

Scully frowned, then slowly said, "I don't know if can answer that with any certainty. Since I'm not sure I believe you can know the future at all. And I'm living in one, 11 years after my own home dimension."

Re: Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[sith_happened]

"So even though you're living in a future, you don't believe you can know the future." Anakin looked confused. "I'm confused."

Re: Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[nohaircutsplz]

"I don't know," Medusalith had to admit after a moment. "I suppose it would depend largely on the specifics of the situation: the person whose future I knew about, and how they would react to that knowledge, and how their reactions might change things. The decision would have to be weighed very carefully."

Re: Answer the first discussion question [9/9]

[squire-hand.livejournal.com]

"Whatever I needed to for whatever I needed," he said.

If he needed to lie to protect his prince or his country, he would.